Digital media as tools to combat neurophobia in medical education: Experience report in an Extension Project

Abstract

Neurophobia, defined as receiving and rejecting neuroscience, is a problem that is evident in several medical schools around the world, in different countries, where many students experience it, in different stages of training. The exact motivations that justify neurophobia are still the subject of studies, analyzes and debates between academics and educators, however, the complexity of the subjects and the need to reformulate the didactics used in teaching such content can compose, at least in part, the origin of such a pedagogical failure. By identifying such a gap, the Extension Project to combat Neurophobia was based on using a more striking and accessible didactics, using social networks, given its easy access and wide use by the academic public. During the period of one year, various contents of neurosciences were posted digitally for students, with an open space for questions and suggestions. Throughout this process, indicators made available by the social network platform were used, controlling the wide reach and visibility that this method of disseminating science has, as well as the ease of saving the content and disseminating it. That is why it is essential that new projects are monitored in the digital university environment, so that the best paths and formats can be discussed, so that contact with this learning model is encouraged and platforms are improved.